Glowing Embers
by choicechaser34
Summary: <html><head></head>A story about life after The Mockingjay. Do Peeta and Katniss get to live happily ever after or is their fairytale short lived? History always seems to have a funny way of repeating itself. Multi-chapter story from different points-of-view from the characters. READ. CRITIQUE. COMMENT. ENJOY!</html>
1. Chapter 1

**This fanfic takes place after The Mockingjay book. I feel like the book ended at a good place to start another story so that's kind of where I am going with it. I plan on making this a multi-chapter story but looking at it from different points-of-view between the characters. I hope you like it! Please feel free to critique me! I would love some feedback. Enjoy! **

**Peeta**

The air is thick with smoke, like a heavy blanket trying to hide the people I hold closest to my heart. Screams pierce the night sky and I struggle to stay on my feet but know I must keep going. For them.

"Katniss! Katniss!" I yell but my voice is barely audible above the chaos around me. I hear the bullet wiz past my head before the sound of the gun goes off and I fall onto my stomach trying to stay hidden. That's when I see them. Lying on the ground, wrap around each other, motionless. My heart stops and feels like it falls out of my chest. I crawl towards them and take them both into my arms and I sob.

"Peeta! Peeta! Wake up! It's just a dream, its not real. Your dreaming baby!" Katniss says hastily but her voice barely reaches me. I'm still in panic. My wife. My daughter. My unborn child. Gone.

"No don't leave me! Please Katniss... Stay..." I sob, begging her to hold on as I grasp her tightly.

I feel pressure around my body but can't figure out what's happening.

"Peeta I'm not leaving. I'm right here, I'm here.." Katniss whispers softly into my ear. I feel tears streaming down my face and my heart is beating so hard I can hear it. The pressure around my chest and back tightens and something is in my hair. No. Someone is stroking my hair.

"Katniss" I sigh, relieved that my nightmare was coming to an end. But it felt so real. I open my eyes and return her embrace. It's been 15 years since the Hunger Games and yet they still haunt me. People, places, smells, voices. It's almost like I never left sometimes. But this dream was different. Present, new and all too real.

I feel the tiny bump in between Katniss and I, the tiny reminder that she is carrying my second child. I hope for a boy only because we already have a beautiful daughter, Lily Primrose Mellark. Dark brown hair, stubborn, and independent like her mother but with blue eyes and charm like me, she is perfect. I smile at just the thought of my 4 year-old little girl.

"I.. I'm sorry it was just a..bad dream." I say trying to steady my voice unsuccessfully.

"I realized. It must've been pretty intense, are you ok now?" Katniss replies, pulling away to look at me.

"Dammit! Katniss your cheek!" I yell under my breath as I reach up to touch the already bruising and swelling scuff on her right cheek. This isn't the first time that I have hit her accidentally during one of my nightmare fits and she isn't innocent either. Sleeping together is a risk for either one of us but it still crushes me every time.

I jump out of bed, grab a towel and start running cold water on it to hold on her cheek.

"Babe I didn't even feel it. I'm fine. Just come back to bed." she says reassuringly but I know she is just trying to make me feel better.

"No Katniss I can't sleep. Not by you anyways. I could hurt the baby!" I am yelling now my voice still unsteady from the recent dream. "And I already hurt you AGAIN. So no. I'm not coming back to bed."

Katniss remains silent as I quickly hand her the damp towel and stride out of the room, confirming what I said to be true. Our baby cannot be harmed. And I am the danger.

Rage fills me to the core as I enter the kitchen and open the cupboard. I grab a large mixing bowl and get to work. _Flour, sugar, salt, baking power.._ I run the ingredients through my head as I take them off the shelf. I hear footsteps behind me but I can't. I can't face my wife after hurting her. I hate myself for it.

"I'm craving blueberry muffins. And Maybe some brownies." Katniss says seriously as she plops down at the kitchen table. _Cocoa, oil, blueberries.._ I quickly change the route of my baking to match her request.

"Peeta, I really am Ok. It's not like this hasn't happened before.." her voice trailing and I sense the regret in the action.

The comment rocks me to the core and I freeze. I set down the bowl and lean against the cold marble counter.

"Peeta.. I didn't mean...it like..that." she stammers out but it's pointless.

"I'm sorry" she says quietly and it breaks my heart.

Forgetting everything I run over to my beautiful wife and gaze into her gray-seam eyes. Her long-wavy brown hair, which is usually braided, now trails down her back and over her right shoulder. Her face seems to glow when I look at her and my whole soul feels like its floating. She is so beautiful. I bring her into my arms and she buries her head into my neck. Her breath tickling and warming me, and I like it. I breathe her in and, of course, she smells like the world right after it rains. Refreshing, woodsy, and pure. Everything my girl is and has always been.

"You have nothing to apologize for. You are perfect. And I am so sorry. I just hate myself for hurting you. You deserve everything that's good in this world and I feel like I'm not giving it to you." I say but not being able to hold her gaze any longer.

Before she can reply a loud and rapid knock pounds on our door. I check the clock. Four-thirty in the morning. I look at Katniss and find my look of confusion mirrored in her expression. I quickly go to the door and find a sober Haymitch wide eyed and alert and I know something is wrong. Haymitch is never sober.

Though his hair is now almost completely white and his skin sags farther from his face, Haymitch's eyes are as bright as ever giving off a boyish quality. He opens his mouth but nothing comes out. His brows furrow in the weight of the news he brings to our home.

"Haymitch what is it?" Katniss says, now at my side, grabbing onto my arm, her other hand planted gently on her growing belly.

Haymitch seems to be taking us all in with his eyes because he steps back and looks at us, his eyes now heavy with concern. He still can't seem to find the right words and I'm not sure I want to hear what he has to say anyway.

"Haymitch, it's ok just tell us." I say as I walk towards him and place a hand on my most trusted and dearest friend.

He looks into my eyes for a long moment and then back at Katniss before he has the decency to drop his gaze.

"Its.. Its Happening again." he says in a voice so low that I have to strain to hear him.

Lead seems to fill my veins, organs, mouth, everything Until I feel like I am weighted where I stand. I hear Katniss's stifled cry behind me but I can't moved. Even Haymitch seems to incapable move. We all stand there reliving the terror of our past knowing that it could now be our future. Realizing that once you've played a game. Its hard to quit it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Katniss**

To say that I like being pregnant is an overstatement. Peeta wanted kids so badly that after 11 years of marriage I gave in. Being pregnant with Lily was... Terrifying. I remember wanting her to stay inside me so I could keep her safe but, at the same time, wanting her out so I could function properly again.

After she was born things changed. I changed. That little girl had me wrapped around her little finger. She makes the hard days not so hard when I watch her play in the meadow, picking weeds (thinking they are flowers) to give to me or Peeta. She loves it when I take her hunting with me in the forest. She loves Peeta's baked goods. She loves lilies since she is named after them. She loves animals. And people. And everyone who meets her can't help but fall in love with her. She reminds me a lot of my sister, Prim.

_Prim._

I am jolted from my thoughts as I hear Haymitch giving Peeta and I the rundown of the latest uprising.

"I knew there were groups out there looking to regain power but... I can't believe its actually happening." Peeta says looking perplexed.

"We have got to act early on this and everyone is going to be looking to you two. Why they look to you? I have no idea." Haymitch says laughing sarcastically. He demanded that Peeta get him some liquor if he was going to tell us the details. So much for staying sober.

"This group is not like President Snow and his capitol puppets. Running around in clown costumes like a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off. This bunch is militant. Strong and forceful. They don't for a second pretend to play nice. So no standing in front of loaded guns calling for peace!" Haymitch yells loudly, the comment definitely directed to me so, I ignore him. Like he thinks I don't remember being shot.

"You with us sweetheart?" Haymitch says snapping his fingers in front of my face. "Pregnancy brain got ya a little...behind?" he slurs and laughs tipping the bottle of gin back, taking a quick gulp.

Anger fills me and I glare at him as I quickly stand and stride out of the room.

"Ok not funny." he says trying to follow me but I hear Peeta stop him.

I quickly find my father's old hunting jacket, the leather fading and tearing in certain places, but I wouldn't think about going out without it. I pull on some jeans; grab my bow out of the closet and head for the door.

"Mommy?" Lily's sleepy voice says behind me as my hand closes around the doorknob.

I freeze. My daughter. Can I protect her from the evil outside this door? Can I keep my family safe?

Prim.

My little sister comes to my mind again. I couldn't keep her safe. My heart pounds in my chest and tears come to my eyes.

"Can I come with you?" she says with a yawn.

A tear runs down my cheek and I don't turn to face her. I don't want her to see me being weak. "Not this time Lily girl. Stay here with your dad ok?" I reply trying to keep a steady voice.

I quickly open and close the door and instantly the cool morning air hits me like a wave crashing in the ocean. It takes my breath away for a moment but I keep moving. I run to the fence, that is no longer charged with electricity and slide in between the wires. I run to the hollowed tree and take out my sheath of arrows and lean against it for a quick break.

I feel a flutter in my abdomen and I feel colder than ever. I can see my breath in the air as I lean against the tree, tears slipping uncontrollably from my eyes. Instantly, a thought comes to my mind and I wish it hadn't. I can't seem to shake it but the truth of the fact is real.

_I wish I wasn't pregnant. I can't bring this baby into a broken world. I just can't._

My hand comes up to my stomach and I press on it, feeling its hardness. I'm not too big to be uncomfortable yet but it's only a matter of time. And with a possible war on the horizon.. Another Hunger Games..

Like a reflex, I'm up and moving again deep into the forest of trees. I can't even begin to think about reliving one of my worse nightmares again so I keep walking until the Sun is completely up. I find a Bush to hide by, hoping that some turkeys may cross my path. Its mid October so the leaves on the trees are a vibrant orange, yellow, red, and pink. My favorite time of year. I close my eyes and put my hand back on the growing child in my belly. Peeta's child. If only I could keep him in this forest. Freeze this moment and keep him inside me, safe and warm forever. I refer to the baby as a "him" since we already have a perfect daughter, a son would be nice.

Moments pass and I vaguely hear a rustle of leaves about ten yards a head of me. A large Turkey steps into the clearing, pecking at the earth beneath him. I pull out an arrow and soundlessly load my bow. I have done this so many times that I could probably shoot the thing with my eyes closed. Inhaling I steady my hands. Exhaling I prepare to let my arrow fly when I feel the flutter in my belly again. My fingers let go of the arrow and it goes zooming towards the Turkey. And I miss.

I watch Peeta pluck the feathers from the bird on the back porch, Lily sitting by him staring at the bird in disgust. Seeing them together makes me smile. They are my whole world. I feel a strong nudge in my belly, like the baby is reminding me that, he too, is a part of my life now.

"I know, I love you too," I whisper to my belly. "But we need to talk about you making me miss that Turkey earlier." I say seriously to my child. As if he can understand me.

"So the remaining..victors.. will be here tomorrow morning?" I ask as I hear Haymitch stumble into the room and plants himself in a chair at the kitchen table.

_Victors. More like the best murders club._ I think to myself.

I hate referring to my group of friends as victors. We didn't win anything. Just pieces of who we use to be remain to help the rest of the world forget. Forget the turmoil and terror that once plagued our world. That now threatens to plague it again.

"MmHmm" he mutters, clearly too drunk to speak.

"How many are left?" I ask quietly to myself but Haymitch hears.

"Don't matter now.. All too old to give a damn anymore." Haymitch slurs in his drunken stupor.

At 32, Peeta and I are the youngest victors left. Maybe Haymitch is right.

Joanna, Finnick, Annie, Enobaria, Peeta, Haymitch and I. I would like to assume Beetee is still around but.. He would be pushing 80 if he was and his health was failing 15 years ago. And of course Gale will be there.

I have not kept contact with our friends since the end of the rebellion. After the war, its just seemed easier to forget everything and everyone.

The media, of course, interviews the victors and war heroes from time to time to keep things calm and to remind those thirsting for power that we still live. And we can and will still fight for our freedom. Although I have noticed that when the crews come to District 12 they have been spending more and more time on Peeta and I and less time with Haymitch. Last time they came I don't think they went to see him at all. His deterioration is too prominent now. He does not resemble someone fierce. Someone who can fight. Maybe that's why people are starting to fight again. Because they know that we are in no shape to stop them anymore.

"Mom the bird is done!" Lily yells skipping into the kitchen.

Haymitch groans and mumbles profanities under his breath at the noise.

"Perfect! Thank you Lil." I say smoothing stray strands of her dark hair as she hugs my leg.

"Not too much longer now." Peeta says after sticking the bird in the oven. He grabs me and pulls me into his arms and kisses me passionately, which makes Lily giggle delightfully.

"Me too! Me too!" she yells with her arms in the air.

Peeta and I laugh and he picks her up and hugs us both. If only life could stay like this simple, fun and perfect.

But tomorrow I have a feeling that everything will change.

**I have got some concerns about how different Katniss seems in this story. I would just like to clarify again that, in this story, she's a wife and a mother now. People do not act 17 forever. Everyone grows up eventually and I felt like portraying Katniss as a mature adult instead of the confused 17 year-old girl she was in the books. I hope that is ok and those who were wondering about it hopefully may start to see her this way. Thanks again for reading! I love the feedback, please keep it coming! **


	3. Chapter 3

**Johanna**

"Dammit!" I yell as I pull the thousandth sliver from my finger. I watch as blood trickles slowly down my middle finger for a minute before wiping it away. It's not the first and it's definitely not going to be the last time I get a damn sliver from the trees around me.

_Unless the shithead traitors actually kill us off this time._

I laugh sadistically at the thought.

After the games I came back to District 7, my home, my woods, everything that has significance in my life is here. The memories of the ones I cared about most in this world haunt the ground I walk on. I close my eyes and take a deep breathe. The fresh air fills my lungs full of the delicious scents around me. Dirt. Pine trees. Sap. The early morning air is cool and refreshing.

Exhaling, I open my eyes and take one last look around my home. I stand in front of my small log cottage, smoke still rising out of the cobblestone chimney, and I can't help but feel the last moments of peace draining from my life. Like I'm looking at my home for possibly the last ever.

"I am seriously getting too old for this shit." I say irritably turning away and never look back. At 36 years old you would think that I had fought all of my battles. Heaven knows I've been in enough for at least ten lifetimes. I walk and scowl as I recall my history, my nightmares.

The city circle is empty and the train tracks are covered with sagebrush and weeds. Like always, I silently say goodbye to my home with no one to return my silent farewell.

Unlike my peers, I never settled down and started a family. Didn't want one. I do "alone" really well. It suits me.

I hear the sound of the train coming and wonder how long it has been since it ran. We usually get all of our supplies via air but.. It sounds like this terrorist group has acquired a large amount of our aircrafts making, flight, unsafe.

"Assholes" I mutter under my breath as the train pulls up and comes to a stop. I step onto the train and freeze as I take in the people in front of me.

Finnick Odair sits on the left side of the car with his arm around a very pregnant Annie Cresta. His hair is now a mixture of blonde and silver streaks and his eyes and mouth have wrinkles around them from years of smiling. He stands and gives me a genuine smile; his teeth still pearly white, his eye still seafoam green, and embraces me in a warm hug. He smells of salt and fresh ocean air.

"Johanna, it is.. A pleasure seeing you again." he says emotionally as he pulls away with a smile a mile wide while looking me over.

It feels almost as if it was just yesterday that I saw him, not 15 years ago.

"Its good to see you too Finnick." I say before letting go of him.

As sad as it is to say, these people are the closest thing to family I have left and I haven't seen them for 15 years. 15 YEARS!

Wow my life is sad.

"Annie you look.. Great!" I say trying to hide my bluff. Pregnancy is so weird.

"Thank you." she replies but does not meet my gaze. Suddenly she covers her ears and closes her eyes real tight like she's hearing something awful.

_Yep. She's still crazy._ I think to myself silently.

I plop down on the seat across from them and glance to my right and see Enobaria staring out the window trying to avoid me. She is still quite pretty her hair still shiny dark-brown and her skin still bronzed and as flawless as ever. She must get lots of work done to stay looking as young as she does. I mean she has got to be close to 45.

I laugh out loud and shake my head. Some things never change.

I look across the car and see two small boys trying to hide behind Annie, peering out ever so slightly at me. They look so much like miniature versions of Finnick that it's scary. Except they have strawberry blonde hair instead of his bronzy- blonde.

"Johanna these are my sons Everett and... Mason." He says with a sly grin and a wink. "I named them after the strongest, kindest, bravest people I know."

I usually don't get emotional and I'm not going to now but I am truly touched. I stare at him with my mouth open unable to form the right words. He named his children after Katniss... And me. Well I guess Katniss's last name was Everdeen. But close enough; Everdeen doesn't make a good first name like Mason does anyway.

I smile wide at Finnick, truly honored that he thought so highly of me. A sly smile comes to my lips and I can't help but say, " I bet Mason can kick Everett's ass, am I right?" I lean back with a satisfied smile and see one of the boys giggling and pointing at the other who looks angry. They are so close in age that they look like they could be twins. Maybe they are.

"Mason this is Johanna Mason." Finnick said reverently to the boy closest to him.

The boys look up at me in.. What I can only explain as awe. Both of their eyes are huge and the seafoam green in their eyes is magnified. It's a beautiful color.

"I have told them all about you and Katniss. We basically consider you guys as family heroes!" Finnick says with a charming smile and a laugh.

I give them a smile and then look at Finnick who looks pleased to see me smiling, something that doesn't happen very often.

I quickly wipe the smile off my face and say "oh don't get all sappy on me now!" I rolled my eyes and he just laughs.

The ride to district 12 is quick, no longer than an hour tops, and before I know it we are coming to a stop.

I stand and get off the train and see Haymitch standing in the middle of the crowded city circle. It looks like the crowd is waiting for something... Us I guess. After all these years this is the first gathering of the victors.

As the rest of them get off the train the crowd starts to applaud and I wish they wouldn't.

I watch as Finnick, Annie, the boys, Enobaria, Gale, and his wife(who I have never met) get off the train. As I look at these people I cant help but wonder; Can we save the country this time? Can I even do anything anymore?

I scowl and head straight for Haymitch and I'm glad to see that his expression is a replica of mine as we walk away from the crowd.

We walk to the outskirts of town where the houses get bigger and bigger and I can't help but glance around at the black and white speckled ground. The group is silent as we walk as we take in the scene around us. While some areas of the city have grass and trees, the farther out we get the less colorful it becomes. The ash from the bombs that destroyed this city, still present on the ground. The ash of flesh and bones still scattered around this place like a freakin crematory.

I shiver and try not to vomit right here and now. Flashbacks of the war, torture chambers, and dead children cloud my mind. I try to stop my mind from taking me to that place. A place I'm afraid of.

But in this setting, around these people, my worst nightmares are inevitable.

**Still trying out the different point-of-view thing but tying the whole story together. What do you all think about it? Like or no? Comment and let me know! Thanks again for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Gale**

Leaves brush across my boots and the air smells of autumn as I stand hand in hand with my wife of 5 years, Jewel Diamond Hawthorne. Her unusually unique name inherited from her homeland, District 2, our home. The train ride was long and restless, I have been so anxious to come back to District 12, a place that will always be home to me.

We wandered away from the group also immediately after exiting the train.

My heart seems to swell as I take in the scene of my old home. The hob, the seam, the town, everything looks so different but feels so familiar at the same time.

Instead of the black market hidden under tents and inside the abandoned warehouse, there are stores of every kind lining the paved streets and sidewalks. The justice building sits in the middle of the town, the stores on the outside making a circle, is landscaped beautifully with bushes, trees, and flowers of every kind. The building itself is a masterpiece with huge open Windows, six marble pillars the color of charcoal, and gigantic oak doors laced with gold to compliment the gray and wooden accents.

I can't help but smile as I see the names of the stores along the street.

Rippers, Greasy Sae's 24/7 Diner, Mellark Bakery and Deli, are among some of the familiar names I notice on the signs around the circle.

Coal & Cole Co., Maggie's Creamery, and Al's Reality are just a few of the names I have never heard of. Looking around I realize that there are more unfamiliar names than familiar to me now.

15 years is too long to be away. But not long enough to forget the heartache that still haunts this ground we now walk.

"So this.. Is where you grew up?" Jewel says uncertainty to me as we reach the end of the loop around town. I have described this place to her so many times that she knows exactly what the old district 12 looked like.

"Its not as bad as I thought." she shrugs and nudges me with a smile. As a native from district 2, she has not had to face true hunger or poverty before. But she is not proud or conceded like a lot of them are. That's why I fell in love with her; she is the kindest, sweetest, strongest person I know. She had her own battles to fight in life since she didn't fit into the mold that District 2 used to set for its citizens. She was among the rebels during the war and fought valiantly.

"This.. Is a lot different from where I grew up!" I say with a laugh and look down at her.

"Well it's quite beautiful here." she replies, looking everywhere around her.

Her blonde hair is flowing carelessly with the breeze, a few strands cross her face and I pull them back. I stare into her forest green eyes and I see everything I ever wanted and need in them. She is so beautiful.

She gives me an award-winning smile, leans up and kisses me. I feel the slight bump of her growing stomach in between us as I pull her close. We are expecting our first child in March and I am.. Terrified to say the least.

"Come on. Let me show you the seam and the rest of town." I whisper to her, our foreheads touching and eyes closed.

We walk out of the city circle and head down the now paved road. There are houses of every size, cars, and colorful fall trees lining the streets of 12. Decorative street lights are place spaciously along the sidewalk, pumpkins and hay bells placed every so often in between them, making the town look festive.

So very different from the colorless broken houses and black, muddy soil that use to be my safe haven.

As we make our way to the mine I see that it is gated off and construction signs surround it. It looks like mechanical machines now go into the unstable mines and carry out the dangerous task of coal mining. It looks organized and safe. So unfamiliar.

I notice the old shaft with the wooden bearings is now closed off with yellow caution tape. The shaft that took me down in the stomach-churning elevator to work everyday.

"See that closed off shaft?" I point to it and grin at my wife.

Her eyes widen and she nods slowly.

"That's where I used to go to get to work. There is a very old elevator in there that used to take us down everyday." I say quietly now staring at it, remembering the hellish dark days.

"How far down does it go?" she asks sounding rather amazed.

"Far enough down that you can almost feel the heat from the earth's core." I say seriously. It may be a slight exaggeration but not much.

I look over at Jewel and her face is ashen and she looks like she might vomit.

"Babe are you.. Ok?" I ask, feeling concerned for my pregnant wife.

Suddenly she turns and vomits violently off to the side of the gate. I rub her back and hold her hair back, apologizing profusely to her. I sometimes forget that EVERYTHING makes her sick now that she is pregnant. I don't know why they call it morning sickness when she is sick all day and night.

"You ok now? Lets go to Katniss's and get you cleaned up." I say gently to her.

"Ugh I hate being pregnant!" she replies miserably. "Ok let's go."

We walk to the outskirts of town til we are almost to the fence that leads to the forest. Then I see it. The Mellark household. The house is tall with wooden paneling and large spacious Windows, giving off a more modern look, Except for the cobblestone chimney that is smoking slowly. On either side of the house are big oak trees, a homemade swing hanging from the one on the right.

I almost forgot that they have a daughter. Rose or something like that.. Some kind of flower.

I smile as I think of the life my best friend has made for herself. From a nightmare to a dream. And now... Danger threatens all of our lives again, the smile quickly fading from my face.

Jewel and I walk up to the big oak door and knock. I throw and arm around my wife and squeeze her, feeling nervous for the first time today.

Its been 15 years since I have spoken with Katniss or Peeta. And With everything that went on between us, I only hope that things aren't awkward.

Peeta answers the door with a wide smile, "Gale! How are you buddy?" he says as we embrace and clap each other on the back.

"I am great man, how are you?" I reply happily, glad to see my old friend. He looks older, a little bit of scruff covers his face and his hair is a little longer than I've seen it before. He is still very fit I notice from his solid form as I pull away.

"Good, good! Come on in," he says happily.

I step into the cozy home and see Katniss standing at the end of the hall, leaning against the wall smiling brightly. She looks great, still the same Katniss I left behind 15 years ago, except more mature. Her gray eyes are an exact match to mine, almost as if they were molded from the same clay. She looks strong but tired, dark circles under her eyes from lack of sleep. I don't blame her though with everything that is happening around us. Our worst nightmares right around the corner, our children having to face this ugly world with their safety uncertain.

She walks up to me swiftly and embraces me, neither of us saying anything. We don't need to.

I feel an all too familiar bump in between us and realize that, She too, is pregnant.

"I didn't know you were expecting!" I say excitedly as I pull out of the embrace and hold her at arms length away.

"Yeah end of March," she says with a laugh and rubs her protruding belly. But I notice her smile quickly fade and feel her shoulders sag slightly at the weight of her announcement.

I pretend to not notice but instantly recognize her hesitation because I feel it as well. Raising a child during another war is... Unfathomable.

"What! Us too!" I say quickly. "Katniss, Peeta, this is my wife, Jewel." I smile at Jewel and pull her close to me.

"Nice to meet you and congratulations on the baby." Katniss says to her warmly while reaching out to shake her hand.

"You too! I have heard so much about you." Jewel says polity returning her handshake.

Suddenly our friendly welcome is interrupted by a loud annoying beeping sound coming from the hologram in the living room.

Everyone's eyes go wide and like zombies we walk into the living room just as the pictures light up on the wall. All 9 adults crowd onto the room with worried, scared, and angry looks plastered on our faces.

"WARNING THIS IS NOT A TEST." a deep voice says as the words travel across the screen. As they disappear, everyone in the room gasps.

The images that come on next will haunt me forever.

**This chapter was really fun to write! It was nice to be able to picture a District 12 post-war and I hope that I was descriptive enough for everyone to get a sense of it too! Hopefully I will be able to post a new chapter today or tomorrow! Thanks again for reading!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Haymitch**

Dying children.

I've been damned to this life unable to see anything else. Haunted by the dead. Unable to fully connect with the living. Dammit all to hell.

I take a long drag on the vodka bottle in my hand, the foggy feeling of forgetfulness not coming quick enough to my mind.

Everything starts spinning as I look around the room see fear spreading like wild fire around me. The sound of gunfire coming from the TV and People collapsing onto the floor, couch, table whatever is closest to them. This is suppose to be the world's warriors!

I laugh loudly. Bunch a pansies if you ask me.

Katniss runs out the door ten seconds into the news report, what a shocker.

"I'll go get her." I slurr out to Peeta as he starts out after her.

I make it to the door and sort of trip down the steps, my vodka sloshing violently around the bottle and splashing on my arms.

"Shit!" I yell loudly enough that Peeta comes running.

"Haymitch are you ok? I can go get her." he says.

"Igotit" I mumble and stagger down the road after her.

Self-righteous little prick. Doesn't he think I can do something on my own? I think to myself as I glare back at Peeta. He's a good kid. A good father and husband. But for Christ's sake does he have to be such a saint all the time?

I make it all the way to the woods without spilling anymore vodka and happily reward myself with another long swig.

"Come on out sweetheart it's just me." I say,sounding kind of defeated, as I make my way to the large oak tree that over looks the town.

I see her sitting behind it, her knees up, arms folded tightly and Her head down resting on her forearms. I see her shoulders shaking and realize that she is sobbing.

My heart aches for her. She is my family now and I... Care about her. Her happiness. Her children.

I roll my eyes at myself for being such a wet blanket but the truth is truth.

"You know, I keep thinking that your too old to be storming out of your house to come here but some things never change. Am I right sweetheart?" I say with a smile and walk up to her slide, nudging her with my leg.

Before I know it she's up and throwing her arms around my neck, sobbing so hard that I have to lean against The tree to support us both.

"There, there.." I say patting her back awkwardly. This has happened many times before but that doesn't make it any less weird.

"Haymitch I have to keep my children safe! I HAVE TO!" she yells desperately, tears streaming down her face as she shakes me slightly.

"I know. I know." I say and pull her into another embrace. I can't help but notice that for the first time, she isn't begging for Peeta's safety.

By the time we get back to her house it is dark. I have my arm around Katniss's shoulder, guiding her through the door into the house. I expected everyone to be around the table making a plan but instead it looks like everyone is right where we left them. In the living room, Gale and his wife sitting like statues in the window seal, Enobaria sitting on the floor with silent tears falling down her face, Finnick holding a hysterical Annie in his arms, and a very red-faced Johanna leaning against the door frame looking like she's about to explode.

Everyone is there except Peeta, which is peculiar to say the least.

Nobody seems to move as we enter except Peeta who turns the corner slowly to face us. His eyes are red and puffy from crying and I can't help but wonder what we missed.

Katniss seems to be frozen at my side as she takes in Peeta's expression. He looks at her with what I can only describe as misery. Total misery. They stare at each other for a moment and then he catches my eye.

I frown at him and give my head a shake, a silent question saying what the hell happen?

His expression turns from misery to violence in a split second and I take a step back, pushing Katniss behind me, wondering if he is going mutt-crazy on us.

Suddenly he is running towards me, his eyes black, face red, and sweat instantly breaks out over his body.

Before I know it we are both crashing to the ground.

"You did this!" he yells at he before his fist connects with my face and then I blackout.

**Sorry its been so long since I have updated! I'll post one more chapter tonight! Thanks for reading!**

**CC**


	6. Chapter 6

**Enobaria**

How do I always find myself on the wrong side of all battles? Amongst my enemies, or at least among people who despise me and would like nothing more than to rip me to shreds. Yeah, yeah I understand that I may have thrown a knife or two at them but it was years ago.

I look over at Johanna Mason and she audibly laughs at me and shakes her head.

"Why are you even here? You aren't one of us." she spats out in disgust.

Like I don't know that. I don't belong anywhere.

I ignore her but the comment she made stings my heart just a little bit. Ever since the rebellion, everyone has treated me like a criminal. I have been an outcast for 15 years and it has taken a toll on me. The only people who matter to me now are my grandmother Victoria and my daughter Jade. Although, few people know about my daughter. I have kept her to myself for the past 14 years.

I got pregnant right before the rebellion was over, Jade's father was preparing to go into battle against the districts. The night he left, I gave myself to him. I gave him all of me because if it was going to be the last time I would see him, I wanted to leave him with a beautiful memory of us.

Unfortunately, it was the last time.

I left him with the memory of my lips on his. Skin on skin. Tangled legs and soft sighs into the darkness. And he left me with a growing child in my belly.

Funny how life works.

I can't help but smile at the thought of my daughter. She's 14 years old, beautiful and strong. When I found out I was expecting at 20 years old I was completely sure that I wasn't ready to be a mother. I was a warrior. Raised to be a fighter and a killer. I crave a good fight, blood gets my adrenaline going and wakes me up. But when I held her in my arms, my world changed forever. I have been hell-bent on keeping her safe ever since.

I never expected to find myself in the Mellark home surrounded by these people who don't trust me. Hell I don't even know info trust myself around this group. When the hologram warning started I expected it to be another silly little riot in some city that I don't care about. But I was wrong.

Figures covered from head to toe in Black clothing grab men, women and children and execute them without mercy. Without feeling. Gun shots fire and we watch helplessly as people try to run but are stopped by a bullet in the back, leg, arm, head... The list goes on and on. Blood and gore fill the room and it is sickening to watch. Finally when I think the terror can't get any worst the screen changes.

Suddenly we see a control room filled with about eight people similarly dressed to those killing innocents in the streets. The leader, as it seems, sits directly in front of the screen with a mic to his mouth.

"Welcome citizens of the United Era." the voice says in a deep scratchy computer-altered voice. "And a special welcome to our remaining victors. Congratulations on surviving the hellish nightmares of the past only to face the impending doom of your furture." the voice laughs sadistically.

I glance around the room and everyone is hanging on to every word and I can't help but think one thing.

We have been baited.

"So tell me victors, have you ever watched someone you admire, aspire to be, and look up to, kill someone you love? Have you ever been pushed around and taken the backlash of the hatefulness of others who came before you? Do you still see the faces of the loved ones lost at war 15 years ago? 15 years of haunting and hurting?" the voice says maliciously into the screen.

"I do hope you can say yes to every single one of those questions. Because then you might understand how we feel. Understand what you have done to us. To our families. What we hope to do to yours." I can hear the smile on the face of the mystery speaker and I am sickened.

I hear Annie Cresta burst out in tears but I can't pull my eyes away from the danger in front of me.

"My dear victors, this violence and killing can all end." The screen flashes back to the horrific murders taking place on the streets.

"It is simple really. All you must do is bring your families, your children and your spouses to the west coast. To the place our ancestors once called, Oregon. All of us in this room," the leader spreads his arms out and gestures to the people surrounding him.

"Would all like to meet you and your loved ones. Especially the young ones, Lily Mellark, Everett and Mason Odair, Asher Mason..

I look over at Johanna and see her face has turned ashen and her eyes are wide. She is visibly shaking. I did not know she had a son and it is clear to see that she did not know anyone else knew either.

My palms are sweating and my breathing is irregular and fast. I silently pray that they know nothing of Jade.

"And of course Jade Winn." the voice says with a smile.

My heart stops and tears rush down my face. But I remain tall. No one will hurt my daughter. No one.

"You have one week to get to the coast. Each day you keep us waiting we will continue slaughtering the innocent. Their blood will be on your hands, _mighty_ victors. It is up to you. The fate of this world is once again in your hands. Be more careful in your decisions this time. You never know who you may be hurting." the leader says, the voice thick with revenge and hate. The screen turns off and we are left to our thoughts.

The silence in the room is deafening. Our families. Our children. My precious Jade. Once again we face the demons of hell who now have our greatest weaknesses as their leverage. But if I know the people in this room like I think I do... We will not go down without a fight.

**More to come! Let me know what you think!**


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